Allina News

[KSTP TV, May 16, 2012] Counties around the Twin Cities metro are reporting high numbers of pertussis, what many of us know as whooping cough. Allina Medical Clinic – Ramsey pediatrician Eric Barth, MD, says one of the key reasons is that a growing number of parents are not getting their children immunized. Watch the interview here.

[WCCO TV, May, 14, 2012] Chances are good sniffling, sneezing and watery eyes are telling you its peak allergy season – and this may be the worst season we’ve seen in some time. While most people think visible dandelions and weeds are to blame, it’s actually trees that are the culprit.

“Ash, birch, maple, oak, cottonwoods – all the tree pollens are sky high right now,” says Allina Medical Clinic – Woodbury allergist Dr. Pramod Kelkar. And even if you don’t have those trees in your backyard, Dr. Kelkar says tree pollens can travel as much as 100 miles. Watch the full report below.

[Pioneer Press, May 13, 2012] Emily Bothun, a professional photographer from Dawson, Minn., was diagnosed with breast cancer in late 2010. She was 23. Krista Mondahl, a college student from Waseca, was diagnosed with breast cancer in early 2011. She was 24.

The women — who live three hours apart — connected through the buddy system at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis. Read the story at pioneerpress.com

[HealthDay, May 11, 2012] A new treatment that involves spinning bone marrow stem cells to enhance their healing potential may help people with advanced heart failure feel and function better, a small study suggests.

Researchers developed the treatment by culturing a patient’s own bone marrow for 12 days. This process helped increase the amount of immune cells and stem cells that can differentiate into several different cell types, including heart cells. Those cells were then injected into heart muscle. 

“A number of people with heart failure have slowly progressing disease despite medication and/or device therapy. If we could have a therapy for this group that would slow the progression of heart failure, it would be economic and change the disease process tremendously,” said study author Dr. Timothy Henry, director of research and an interventional cardiologist at the Minneapolis Heart Institute at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis. Read more at medicalxpress.com

Former cancer patient Marlene Miller works out at Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute.

[Star Tribune, May 4, 2012] Dr. Nancy Hutchison knows that there’s life after cancer. But many survivors continue to struggle with the side effects of treatment after it’s over: swelling, limited motion, severe weakness and fatigue.

Now, Sister Kenny is trying to change that with a new program in Minnesota and western Wisconsin. In April, it launched the Survivorship Training and Rehabilitation (STAR) program, which is specially tailored to the needs of cancer patients. Read the whole story at startribune.com.

Dr. Timothy Dirks, cardiologist at Minneapolis Heart Institute, Brainerd Lakes, speaks to the public recently.

[Brainerd Dispatch, May 2, 2012] People are accustomed to the sound of a heartbeat early on, with the soft thumping beat signifying the first sign of life in infancy and the last sound before passing. So accustomed to that sound, said Susan White, registered and licensed dietician with the Minneapolis Heart Institute, that “the heart tends to get taken for granted.”

Read the full story online at brainerddispatch.com.

[KMSP Fox 9, April 29, 2012] The Allina Health Neighborhood Health Connection launched at the Minneapolis Farmers Market on Sunday with healthy activities, tips, food and health screenings. Dr. Courtney Baechler, preventive cardiologist, was interviewed live from the site by Fox 9 News and talked about why Allina Health is doing this. Watch here.

[KSTP.com, April 30, 2012] Would you bang on a drum with some of your neighbors if it meant better health?

From drumming to jumping to blood pressure screenings, hundreds of families are learning more about a new initiative to give neighborhoods the tools to live healthier lives. Read more at kstp.com.

[KSTP-TV, April 29, 2012] Drumming, belly-dancing, gardening and eating healthy are all good for you and more fun if you do it with your neighbors. That was the point of the Allina Health Neighborhood Health Connection that launched Sunday at the Minneapolis Farmers Market. KSTP-TV News caught it all on video.

[Minnesota Public Radio, April 28, 2012] A new initiative kicking off at the Minneapolis Farmers Market on Sunday hopes to support healthy communities.

Allina Health said its new Neighborhood Health Connection program will allow community members to apply for grants to support activities like building a community garden or starting a yoga group. They can also ask Allina to come to their neighborhood to give free health screenings or set up a fitness challenge using pedometers. Read more at mpr.org.

[KARE 11, April 27, 2012] Allina Hospitals and Clinics has a new name and a new mission. It will now be known as Allina Health and it’s launching a new program to connect with the community.

The Minneapolis Farmers Market will be the site of an event on Sunday, April 29, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., that kicks off the Neighborhood Health Connection.

Dr. Courtney Baechler, a preventive cardiologist and newly appointed medical director of the Penny George Institute for Health and Healing, joined KARE 11 News @4 to talk about all the changes. Watch here.

[Minnesota Public Radio, April 26, 2012] University of Minnesota Gophers football player Gary Tinsley died of an enlarged heart April 6, according to a Hennepin County Medical Examiner report released Wednesday.

Minneapolis Heart Institute researcher Dr. David Feldman told Tom Crann of All Things Considered that the condition could be caused by factors including genetic defects, infection or allergies. Listen to the report here.